Daviess County had Owensboro Catholic on the edge of defeat, but the Lady Aces did not fold.
In an all-out effort by both sides, Catholic edged the Lady Panthers 3-2 (21-25, 25-18, 25-27, 28-26, 15-10) in Tuesday’s important 9th District volleyball match.
Down two sets to one, Catholic trailed by eight points late in the fourth frame. Even after clawing their way back and briefly taking a lead, the Lady Aces found themselves facing a pair of match points as DC went up 24-22.
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For a full photo gallery from the game, click here.
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Led by the efforts of Madeline Castlen, the Lady Aces went ahead 25-24 and eventually evened the match after winning the frame on their third set point. Castlen won the final two points at the net.
The Lady Aces nearly ran away with the tiebreaker fifth set, jumping out to a 9-3 advantage. DC got within 10-9, though Catholic won five of the final six points to close out the win.
“I’m proud of my girls for fighting it out,” said Lady Aces head coach Brian Hardison. “Earlier in the year we would have panicked. That game would have been over. The girls came in and took over.”
The resiliency was led by a trio of seniors that are at the heart of Catholic’s lineup. Cecilia Clemens, Cassidy Towery and Belle Wright all made big plays the kept the Lady Aces’ hopes alive.
“My three seniors on the floor showed awesome leadership,” Hardison said. “Our younger girls down the line also played big. The girls wanted to carry the momentum into the last set. We usually dig a hole really fast, but we didn’t tonight. We really went after them.”
The Lady Panthers controlled much of the first set, pulling away late for the early advantage. Catholic responded with a dominant second set, using a 10-2 run midway through to even the match.
The Lady Aces had a set point in the third but couldn’t convert, and DC capitalized to go up 2-1. In the fourth, the Lady Panthers worked their way to an 18-11 lead before Catholic stormed back for the win.
“It’s a tough loss, but we are using it as a learning experience and are hungry for what’s to come,” said DC head coach Tyla Bailey.
The offensive effort by Catholic was led by the three seniors. Clemens was all over the floor, finishing with 65 assists to go along with three aces, three kills and three digs.
Towery (24 kills, 5 blocks, 2 digs) and Wright (19 kills, 9 digs, 2 blocks) were big forces at the net, as was Castlen (14 kills, 3 blocks, 2 digs).
Also helping the cause for Catholic were Cate Sights (8 kills, 5 blocks), Allie Hamilton (4 digs, 3 blocks, 2 assists), Jayden Bickett (6 digs) and Jenna Glenn (4 digs).
DC’s effort was led by Ashton Johnson (18 kills, 4 blocks, 2 digs), Elizabeth Moore (19 kills, 3 blocks, 2 digs), Kloee Phelps (25 digs, 2 kills, 2 aces), Kendal Goetz (20 digs, 2 aces), Hannah Axley (24 assists, 8 digs) and Ryan Keller (24 assists).
Other contributors were Jasmine Beasley (9 kills, 6 blocks), Kinsley Phelps (5 blocks, 4 kills, 3 digs) and Delaney Evans (9 digs, 3 aces).
The Lady Aces move into sole possession of first place in the 9th District with only Owensboro (9-16, 0-5) left on the district schedule. DC and Apollo (14-7, 3-2) are tied for second and will square off next week.
Catholic plays again Thursday at Bowling Green, while DC plays Thursday at Webster County.
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